Description

United States Patent Ofiice 2,718,126 ICE MOLD FOR DENTAL USE Sam W. Ball, Amarillo, Tex. Application October 9, 1952, Serial No. 313,964 1 Claim. (Cl. 62-4085) This invention relates to improvements in ice cube molds which may be inserted in the freezing compartment of any mechanical refrigerator or the like, and more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to the improvement in the process of forming ice molds adaptable for use for topical anesthesia of the soft tissues of the oral cavity or mouth.

It is well known that the soft tissues of the human being are very tender and a prick of a hypodermic needle therein causes undue pain and discomfort to the patient. The necessity of injecting the hypodermic needle into the gums in various types of dental work is well known and many types of topical anesthesia have been contemplated with the view of overcoming this discomfort to the patient. Of course, in many instances the use of the hypodermic needle is such to provide an anesthesia for further dental work. There is apparently no known practical method utilized today for alleviating the discomfort of the hypodermic needle prick in dental work.

The present invention contemplates the formation of ice cubes of a configuration substantially similar to that of the prescribed areas of the mouth, in order that it may be easily and conveniently inserted in the patients mouth for an expeditious anesthesia prior to the use of the hypodermic needle.

It is an important object of this invention to provide a flexible mold for the making of ice cubes of variable designs and shapes, and particularly ice cubes which substantially conform to the configuration of the prescribed areas of the mouth for specific hypodermic injections to obtain a nerve block or infiltration anaesthesia.

And still another object of this invention is to provide a mold for the making of ice cubes of variable designs and configurations which is very simple in construction and can be made out of any suitable resilient or flexible material that will permit easy expansion of the material and at the same time permit ease of removal of the cubes after freezing.

And still another object of this invention is to provide an ice mold which will form ice cubes substantially in the shape of the mouth thereby facilitating the ease of disposition of the ice cubes in the patients mouth for applying local anesthesia to the prescribed areas.

And still another object of this invention is to provide an ice mold for freezing ice cubes utilized in anesthetic dental work which is simple in construction and durable.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be evident from the following detailed description, read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate my invention.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a top plan view showing three different types of cube configurations for the mold.

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken on lines 22 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 1 showing a slightly modified form of mold for different cube configurations.

Referring to the drawings in detail, reference character 2 designates a substantially square shaped mold formed of any suitable resilient material, such as rubber or any similar synthetic material which is pliable, flexible and easy to handle. The mold 2 is formed with a recessed portion or cavity 4 having a configuration on the arc of a circle as shown, similarly, a recessed portion 6 having a configuration of greater curvature substantially approaching a semi-circular shape is also shown. A third cavity 8 is provided and is substantially rectangular in 2,718,126 latented Sept. 20, 1955 shape. The different shapes of the recessed portions or cavities 4, 6 and 8, respectively, are adapted to be filled with water, either plain or flavored, and afterwards the mold is placed in a freezing compartment of any mechanical refrigerator or the like and frozen to form ice cubes of substantially the same shape as that disclosed in cavities 4, 6 and 8.

It will be apparent from an inspection of Fig. 2 that the cavities 4, 6 and 8 have a substantially rounded or concaved exterior bottom and are of sufficient depth to provide the desired mold. The cavities are slightly tapered as at 10 to facilitate the ease of removal of the frozen cubes from the molds.

In Fig. 3 is shown a modification of the mold 2 wherein there is a cavity 12 of substantially straight configuration having rounded ends, while cavity 14 is similar to cavity 6 of the preferred embodiment, and cavity 16 is also provided for a substantially round shape. It will be appreciated that these cavities are preferred to have a substantially rounded or concaved bottom as shown in Fig. 2. However, they may be formed with a slightly different bottom configuration if desired.

The cavities 4, 6 and 14 are of a configuration substantially conforming to the contour of the dental processes, and whereas cavity 4 is not as great a curvature as 6, however, cavity 14 is similar in curvature to cavity 6, but is a little larger in radius of curvature to provide frozen cubes for any slight variance in process configuration, for example, between the inside of the upper processes as compared to the inside of the lower processes. The square-shaped cavity 8, as well as the round shape 16 and the elongated shape 12 are for forming ice molds of special application for desensitizing various portions of the mouth.

It will be apparent that the present invention contemplates a flexible elastic tray divided into a plurality of cavities or cups of variable shapes and designs substantially conforming to the variable contours of the mouth. The mold is of such proportions that it can be easily inserted in anyconventional type freezing chamber of a mechanical refrigerator or the like, and furthermore, after freezing of the water contained in the cavities, the frozen cubes of the particular configuration are easily removable from the mold due to the tapered construction of the cavities themselves.

Changes may be made in the combination and arrangement of parts as heretofore set forth in the specification and shown in the drawings, it being understood that any modification in the precise embodiment of the invention may be made within the scope of the following claims without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

A mold for making frozen cubes of variable designs comprising a substantially square-shaped member formed of elastic material, a plurality of water bearing cavities provided in the mold, a portion of said cavities being of a curvature to substantially conform to the contours of the human mouth, and the other of said cavities being of a contour adaptable for insertion between the inner portion of the human mouth and the processes thereof, whereby the frozen cubes may be utilized for desensitizing the soft tissues prior to the injection of a hypodermic needle therein, said cavities having tapered side portions to facilitate the removal of the frozen cubes from the mold.